Published November 1, 2003.
We wanted a spice-rubbed turkey recipe featuring succulent meat perfumed with spices and covered with crisp, flavor-packed, mahogany-colored skin. To reach this goal, we brined and then air-dried the turkey for maximum skin crispness and applied the rub not only to the skin but also to the meat underneath and inside the cavity. Lifting the skin had the added advantage of creating pockets of air between the skin and flesh that made it easier for the fat to render for our best spice-rubbed turkey recipe.
The best tool to grind the spices is a coffee grinder dedicated to the purpose of spice grinding (do not cross-contaminate your coffee or spices by using one grinder for both). Charcoal briquettes are the preferred fuel for grill-roasting on a charcoal grill because they burn more slowly and more evenly than hardwood charcoal.
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